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Obama to allow travel, money transfers to Cuba

(AP) - President Barack Obama directed his
administration Monday to allow unlimited travel and money transfers
by Cuban Americans to family in Cuba, and to take other steps to
ease U.S. restrictions on the island, a senior administration
official told The Associated Press.

The formal announcement was being made at the White House Monday
afternoon, during presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs' daily
briefing with reporters.

The official spoke on condition of
anonymity so as not to upstage the president's announcement.

With the changes, Obama aims to create new space for the Cuban
people in their quest for political freedom and a democratic
government, in part by making them less dependent on the Castro
regime, the official said.

Other steps taken Monday include allowing gift parcels to be
sent to Cuba, and issuing licenses to increase communications among
and to the Cuban people. About 1.5 million Americans have relatives
in Cuba.

Obama had promised to take these steps as a presidential
candidate. It has been known for over a week that he would announce
them in advance of his attendance this weekend at a Summit of the
Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.

"There are no better ambassadors for freedom than Cuban
Americans," Obama said in a campaign speech last May in Miami, the
heart of the U.S. Cuban-American community. "It's time to let
Cuban Americans see their mothers and fathers, their sisters and
brothers. It's time to let Cuban American money make their families
less dependent upon the Castro regime."

Sending money to senior government officials and Communist Party
members remains prohibited.

Restrictions imposed by the Bush
administration had limited Cuban travel by Americans to just two
weeks every three years. Visits also were confined to immediate
family members.

Other steps taken Monday include expanding the things allowed in
gift parcels being sent to Cuba, such as clothes, personal hygiene
items, seeds, fishing gear and other personal necessities.

The
administration also will begin issuing licenses to allow companies
to provide cell and television services to people on the island,
and to allow family members to pay for relatives on Cuba to get
those services, the official said.